You are much more interested in books! You seem to really love looking at the pictures while we read to you. You used to last about 30 seconds looking at a book, and now you'll sit through an entire story!

You're getting much stronger and holding your head up more steadily. If we stand still while holding you, you have no problem, but if we walk around you get a little wobbly.

That tummy time is paying off!

Speaking of which, you don't mind tummy time, but you're no closer to rolling over. You rolled over once this month (July 27th), but you haven't done it again since. It makes sense---you've got a lot of chunk to move!

Also, you are still a spitting machine. You spit up after almost every meal, but you also spit up randomly. It could be ten minutes, an hour, two hours after you last ate, and we're still not safe.

You're blowing bubbles now! You can also spit (not blowing raspberries, but making noises with your lips), and you're MUCH more vocal all of a sudden. You will also happily hang out on your activity mat for about an hour all by yourself, just chatting and looking at your animals and smiling now and then.

You LOVE your daddy. He's your favorite! You stare at him with the sweetest look that makes my heart skip a beat every time. I love seeing the bond between you two. Daddy sings to you, reads you stories, makes silly faces with you, and helps you with tummy time. This month was also your first time playing "airplane" with daddy, and you had absolutely no opinion about the activity. It was sort of anticlimactic, really.

You love me, too, of course. But then again, I feed you, so what's not to love?

You seem really comfortable hanging out with other people. I'm so excited that you have been able to meet so many people who are important in our lives, and we look forward to you getting to know them (and vice versa!).

Baby swap! Ed with Marshall (who was probably hungry) and Terry with Kayla

And the SMILES!!! You smile almost anytime we smile at you now, and it's just about the greatest thing ever.

You're a pretty good sleeper. At night, you sleep from about 7 or 7:30 until 4. You eat and then go right back to sleep for another few hours. I consider that to be pretty good! Of course, sometimes you wake up twice during the night (maybe around 1 or 2 and then around 5 or 6), but I'd say we're in a decent routine so I don't feel like a total zombie.

You're also very good at escaping from even the Miracle Blanket, probably because you're essentially The Hulk.

During the day, your naps are ALL over the place. If you're sleeping in your crib or cosleeper, you'll nap 20-45 minutes. If you're being held, you'll sleep much longer, maybe an hour or more. And if we're out and about, all cozy in your car seat, you'll sleep up to three hours! Since you have no real routine or schedule yet, we just go with the flow.

I think you really like getting outside for fresh air. If we're home all day, which is rare, you get pretty worked up by 3 or 4 pm. If we go out, even for a few hours, you're much more agreeable by the end of the day.

We started noticing some red hair! In certain lights, it's like you're a full-on redhead. In other lights, your hair looks black. But your eyebrows are undeniably strawberry blonde, and your eyelashes are super dark, so we'll see what happens.

You started putting your hands in your mouth a LOT this month, and more recently you're exploring toys in the mouth too. But you have virtually no fine motor skills, so it's pretty cute to see you play.

Scout is getting used to you. For the first month you were here, Scout spent a lot of time hidden in the corner, probably just scoping things out from a safe spot. Now he's a little more curious about you, and I can tell he knows you aren't exactly a threat. He's still tentative, but he's finding ways to bond. You, however, have still shown zero signs that you're aware of his existence.

This month we took two big trips: to Ojai for the wedding and to Nor Cal for your very first trip to the Bay Area (I'll write about it soon). It was so special to me to start to introduce you to where I come from. You also got to meet more of our favorite people, and you met Uncle Chris and Auntie Shlee's dogs, Achilles and Tango!

With Winnie (super pregnant with Keston...and so adorable)

They loved you. Both dogs kept licking you all over and wanted to be near you all the time. You let them lick you in the face and didn't seem to even notice what had happened!

You seem to like car rides for the most part, and you were GREAT on our long trips. You slept almost the entire way to and from the Bay Area! I'm sure you were exhausted from your busy weekend, but it was great to see you so comfortable.

We're so glad to have you in our lives, big boy. It's a joy to watch you experience the world around you!

Monday, August 25, 2014

Geez, finally I make time to writing about Jenn and Justin's awesome wedding weekend. Talk about a delay.

Well, more than two weeks ago we headed up the coast a bit to Ojai, California. I had never been to the small town, so I was excited to check out a new place, and of course I couldn't wait to celebrate this perfect couple! We arrived on Friday, checked into the Hummingbird Inn, changed, and headed to the rehearsal, where Terry dropped me off.

(I loved Jenn's rehearsal dress!)

The ceremony site was so serene and beautiful. I loved being surrounded by nature. I'm a big fan of wedding venues that require virtually no decor because they're so naturally stunning, and Bodee's fit the bill. Jenn ran through the ceremony with all of us before we headed to the rehearsal dinner at a local Mexican restaurant.

My dates

And after dinner the party continued at the bridal party hotel. Jenn and Justin both have a lot of family from the East Coast and throughout the country, so the Friday night cocktail party was a great way for everyone to meet and catch up.

Saturday morning my parents met us at our hotel (they came into town to babysit Marshall for Friday and Saturday nights so Terry and I could enjoy the wedding) and the five of us walked through the town to breakfast at Ojai Cafe Emporium. It was phenomenal! Everything looked SO good, so I would definitely want to go back.

I think this was my dad's first photobomb.

Then we wandered around Ojai and found this awesome bookstore, Bart's Books, which is an outdoor bookstore! You can see in this photo that there are books all around the outside, and they stay there overnight too!

Then the "inside" (through a gate) is still outdoors. The books are all used, and my parents treated Marshall to a bunch of kids' books. His library is really growing!

Then it was time for me to start getting ready to head over to the wedding. I was a bridesmaid for the wedding, and I knew I wanted to be able to be 100% present for Jenn. It was nice to leave Marshall with Terry, who then left him with my parents, so I wouldn't have to worry at all. It was my longest time away from him (nine hours), so I missed him, but I knew he was in good hands.

We got ready in Jenn's room, finishing our hair and makeup and chatting a bit before traveling together over to the venue. Jenn seemed so calm and looked to be enjoying herself throughout the whole process! (By the way, Jenn's gorgeous hair and makeup were done by her cousin.)

Jenn's dress was STUNNING!

We each got to choose our own dress; Jenn asked for them to be coral and above the knee but otherwise let us go to town.

They looked awesome together!

Jenn with her maid of honor, Sarika. Gorgeous!

Thanks to my awesome husband for taking some pictures while I fulfilled my bridesmaid duties.

The groom, Justin (left), and his best man

Jenn and her dad

Nice shot of the back of Jenn's dress, which was my favorite part.

Me and my walk-back-down-the-aisle-partner Trevor

Cocktail hour

More cocktail hour

The wedding itself was awesome and so very Jenn-and-Justin. Jenn walked down the aisle to "Marry You" by Bruno Mars (<--fun flash mob proposal video). The vows were touching and sweet and lovely. The venue felt intimate and rustic. The food was terrific, too! And Jenn and Justin performed an incredible first dance (<--check it out!) that they choreographed themselves.

I'm so happy for Jenn and Justin, two people I truly respect and love. They are such a fun, loving, kind couple, and they complement each other perfectly. I wish them a lifetime of happiness together! Congratulations, Jenn and Justin!

The dishes from that meal (and every meal, lately) sat in the sink for 24 hours before I finally tackled them today. The sink is currently empty and I am wondering if we can just eat out for the rest of the year week to avoid creating more dishes.

Success

Terry and I are going strong (three weeks in a row?) with our pledge to get out for a family workout once during the week. We actually went TWICE this week--on Monday night we took Marshall for a shorter walk in the Ergo and then yesterday we all went to the Strand for a walk and run.

Failure

I know I should celebrate the fact that I'm running again, so I guess you glass-half-full people can call it a success, but on the aforementioned run I jogged exactly one mile. I stopped twice. It took 11 minutes. Let's just say I have a long road ahead.

Success

This adorable bundle is clearly exhibiting red hair. I could not be more thrilled. Since I was little I hoped to have redheaded children. (This dream sounds less strange when you learn that my brother is a redhead and had the most adorable orange hair as a kid. He was way cuter than I was.)

Evidence:

Failure
I heard about this Mom-focused workout group called Stroller Strides. Have you heard of it? It sounds awesome--you bring your stroller (and your child, presumably), and the workout is catered to moms pushing a stroller and using light weights to complete a 60-minute workout. It's awesome all around, right? You get out of the house, you meet other moms, you get a workout, and you bring your kid. So I looked it up, found a FREE class literally two minutes from my apartment, and got all registered...and then didn't go. Honestly, I'm such a wimp about trying new stuff on my own. I get intimidated and nervous and then talk myself out of it. I hope that by writing about it on here I'll feel encouraged to go to the next one. I have no excuse, guys; there are multiple classes each week very near me, and you get to try your first class for free. What the hell am I waiting for? Someone hold me accountable, please.

Success
Despite my now-infamous (because I just told you about it) ability to procrastinate and actually get out and do things, I am proud to say that I've become very determined to get out of the house every day with Marshall. Non-parents: I realize this feat may not seem particularly impressive. Parents: Perhaps even you feel that getting out every day isn't so incredible. But I really struggle with the basic act of leaving my apartment every day because it's a HUGE hassle. Not just the packing up and getting Marshall ready; I have to carry a ridiculously heavy car seat + baby relatively far, and often we don't really have anywhere to go, so it's easy to put it off until suddenly it's almost time for Terry to come home. I love having appointments scheduled or lunch dates with friends because it forces me to leave the house. But lately I'm on a roll with leaving the house every day, including long walks with Marshall each day, and I'm really trying to keep that going. Otherwise we both go a little crazy around 4 pm, and no one needs a cranky mom and baby.

Success
It's not my success, but Marshall got me an awesome birthday gift: Two Weeks Notice. I love Hugh Grant and Sandra Bullock, and I've been wanting to own this movie for years. Apparently I mentioned it enough times to convince Terry to buy it for me, so everyone wins.

About Me

I'm a healthy living blogger and NASM Certified Personal Trainer, documenting my journey through food, workouts, health, and fun! I believe in eating whole, real, homemade foods as much as possible, occasionally (okay, every night) enjoying a sweet treat or three. My motto is NO EXCUSES: find a way to make your healthy goals happen. Through my blog, I aim to show how I strive to make my health and fitness goals a reality, while I navigate my second year of marriage and continue my career teaching high school English. I hope you'll enjoy what you find!
I would love to hear from you! Comments, questions, ideas, or suggestions are always welcome. Please e-mail me at abetterlifewithburgers@gmail.com.